It is known to apply pinch sensors to prevent a power-activated closure panel such as a lift gate or side door from closing if a foreign obstacle or object is detected just as the panel closes. The pinch sensors come in different forms, including non-contact sensors such as those based on capacitance changes, and contact sensors which rely on a physical deformation caused by contact with a foreign object.
The contact pinch sensors are typically applied in the form of a rubber strip which is routed along and adjacent to the periphery of a vehicle door. The rubber strip embeds two wires which are separated by an air gap. When the two wires contact one another, the electrical resistance therebetween drops, and a controller connected to the two wires monitors the drop in resistance or voltage, detecting an object when the drop exceeds a predetermined threshold. The fundamental problem with such conventional pinch sensors, however, is that they have a limited activation angle typically on the order of about thirty-five degrees per side. Thus, in the event the pinch force is applied obliquely rather than head on, the wires may not contact one another.